Apparatus and methods of storing wet wipes in bulk while retaining moisture

ABSTRACT

A container is provided and includes a plastic receptacle, an aperture and a flap. The plastic receptacle is formed by a pair of plastic sheets each having a perimeter. The plastic sheets are bonded along the respective perimeter to form an inner space. The aperture is formed on one of the plastic sheets to allow access into the inner space. The flap is adherable to the one of the plastic sheets to close the aperture and is at least partially removable from the plastic receptacle to open the aperture. The inner space is hermetically sealed when the aperture is closed by the flap to retain moisture in the inner space. The plastic sheets and the flap are identical in composition.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Application No. 63/048,242, filed Jul. 6, 2020, the entire contents and disclosure of which are incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates to apparatus and methods of dispensing wipes from a container and, more particularly, a container providing a closable aperture from which wipes are dispensed.

Description of the Related Art

Bag storing wet wipes in bulk have large openings at the top. This exposes the entire roll of wet wipes to the ambient air and causes needless evaporation of moisture from the wet wipes. If the wet wipes contain alcohol, this effect is aggravated since alcohol tends to evaporate much faster than water-formula-based wipes. Opening the top of the bag in this manner is not practical for keeping the wipes wet since the opening of the bag needs to occur repeatedly.

Apparatus and methods that retain moisture in bags or containers despite repeated opening of the bags or containers would help solve this problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one example embodiment, a container comprises a plastic receptacle, an aperture, and a flap. The plastic receptacle includes an outer surface and an inner space. The aperture is formed on the outer surface to allow access into the inner space. The flap is adherable on the outer surface to close the aperture and is at least partially removable from the outer surface to open the aperture. The inner space is sealed when the aperture is closed by the flap. The plastic receptacle and the flap are identical in composition.

In another example embodiment, a container comprises a plastic receptacle, an aperture, and a flap. The plastic receptacle is formed by a pair of plastic sheets each having a perimeter. The plastic sheets are bonded along the respective perimeter to form an inner space. The aperture is formed on one of the plastic sheets to allow access into the inner space. The flap is adherable to the one of the plastic sheets to close the aperture and is at least partially removable from the plastic receptacle to open the aperture. The inner space is hermetically sealed when the aperture is closed by the flap to retain moisture in the inner space. The plastic sheets and the flap are identical in composition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an elevated, right perspective view of an example embodiment of a container housing a roll of wipes;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the example embodiment of the container in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an elevated perspective view of the example container showing a flap covering an aperture of the container;

FIG. 4 is an elevated perspective view of the example container showing the flap partially removed from the container to open the aperture;

FIG. 5 is an elevated perspective view of the example container showing a wipe being dispensed therefrom through the aperture; and

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of manufacturing an example embodiment of the container.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIGS. 1-3 illustrate an example embodiment of a container 10 for storing items which may contain moisture or liquid. The container 10 may be used to store cleaning supplies such as a set of wipes 12. The wipes 12 may be wet wipes such as alcohol-based wipes, water-formula based wipes, dry wipes, or the like. The wipes 12 may be provided as a roll of wipes that are pre-cut and detachable so as to be individually dispensed via pulling. Alternatively, the wipes 12 may be provided as a stack of wipes that are folded and arranged so as to be individually dispensed via pulling. The set of wipes 12 may include 180 wipes, for example.

The container 10 may include a receptacle 14 that may be made of flexible materials such as plastic or thermoplastic. Specifically, the materials may be biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP), cast polypropylene (CPP), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) or a combination thereof. As such, the receptacle 14 may be shapeless in that the receptacle 14 is bendable, pliable, modifiable, and take on a variety of shapes. For example, the receptacle 14 may be rectangular when it is laid flat on a surface. The receptacle 14 may be formed with a plastic covering 18 forming an inner space in which the items are stored. In one example embodiment, the plastic covering 18 may be a pair of plastic sheets that are bonded along their respective perimeter 18a such that an inner space is formed between the plastic sheets and inwardly of the perimeters 18a of the plastic sheets. The materials from which receptacle 14 is made may be transparent or translucent to make the contents of the container 10 viewable from the outside or may be partially or entirely opaque/colored.

As shown in FIG. 4, the plastic covering 18 may have an outer surface on which an aperture 20 is formed and by way of which the inner space is accessed from outside the receptacle 14/container 10. In one example embodiment, the aperture 20 may be formed on one of the plastic sheets.

The container 10 may include a flap 16 that is used to cover the aperture 20 and seal the inner space of the receptacle 14 from the outside environment. The flap 16 may be adherable to an outer surface of the container 10/receptacle 14, and may be configured and positioned to cover and close the aperture 20. The inner space may be sealed when the aperture 20 is closed by the flap 16, and may be hermetically sealed so as to prevent any moisture from escaping through the aperture 20 in one example embodiment.

The flap 16 may be removable, or at least partially removable, to open the aperture 20 and to allow access to the inner space. In one example embodiment, the flap 16 may be configured to be completely removable from the receptacle 14. Alternatively, the proximal portion may be integrated to form a single piece with the receptacle 14. In this regard, the flap 16 and the receptacle 14 may be made of materials that are identical in composition in order to facilitate formation of a single piece. Moreover, the flap 16 may include a proximal portion 16 a and a distal portion 16 b. The proximal portion 16 a may be irremovably attached to the outer surface of the receptacle 14 while the distal portion may be removable from the outer surface of the receptacle 14. The proximal portion of the flap 16 may be attached to the receptacle 14 by bonding, for example.

In one example embodiment, the aperture 20 may be oval and may have a diameter ranging approximately between 30 mm and 60 mm. For example, the short axis of the aperture 20 may be 30 mm and the long axis may be 60 mm. In another example embodiment, the aperture 20 may be circular and have a diameter ranging between 30 mm and 60 mm. The diameter of the aperture 20 may be approximately 30 mm, 45 mm or 60 mm. The aperture 20 may vary in shape or dimensions in other example embodiments.

Moreover, the aperture 20 on the receptacle 14 may have a given area and the flap 16 may be dimensioned to be larger than the given area of the aperture 20 so as to be capable of fully covering the aperture 20. In one example embodiment, the flap 16 may be 75 mm long and 65 mm wide for a circular aperture 20 that has a diameter of 45 mm.

The flap 16 may be similarly shaped as the aperture 20 but have larger dimensions. For example, an oval flap 16 may be provided with an oval aperture 20 or a circular flap 16 may be provided with a circular aperture 20. In one example embodiment, the perimeter around the aperture 20 may be applied with the adhesive while the flap 16 is not thereby allowing the flap 16 to repeat the process of adhering to the outer surface of the receptacle 14 (thus closing the aperture 20) and being removed therefrom (thus opening the aperture 20).

Alternatively, the flap 16 may be applied with an adhesive to make the flap 16 adherable to the outer surface of the plastic covering 18. Specifically, the adhesive may be applied along most of the perimeter of the flap 16. It may be possible to not apply the adhesive on a part of the distal portion in order to facilitate the grasping of the flap 16 when opening the aperture 20.

In one example embodiment, the adhesive may be a 1R adhesive.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example method of manufacturing an example embodiment of the container 10. In Step S1, the materials from which the container 10 may be provided in the form of a film. In Step S2, the film may be printed with various design features that will appear on the exterior of the bag. In Step S3, a polyethylene (PE) film may be bonded over the film printed with the design features to form a composite film. Heat pressing may be used in Step S3, for example. The composite film may be dried and solidified in Step S4. Thereafter, the composite film may be cut into one or more pieces that can become the container (Step S5), and an aperture 20 may be formed on one piece of the composite film such as by stamping (Step S6). The pieces of the composite film may be sealed to form the container 10 (Step S7). In Step S7, three sides of the container 10 may be heat sealed initially, and the remaining side of the container 10 may be sealed after the set of wipes 12 is placed inside the container 10.

The container 10 may be made by cutting a sheet of plastic material to have an appropriate overall shape and design, and to include detailed features such as the aperture 20. Thereafter, the sheet may be folded so as to enclose the set of wipes 12 and appropriate portions of the sheet may be adhered by bonding, heat sealing or the like to thereby obtain the desired final shape of the container 10 with the set of wipes 12 stored therein.

When the container 10 with a set of wipes 12 is provided to be used for the first time, the container 10 will be provided in a hermetically sealed state to facilitate the retention of moisture in the wipes 12. A user can open the aperture 20 by grasping a part of the distal portion 16 b of the flap 16 that is not adherable to the outer surface of the plastic covering 18. By pulling on the flap 16, the user can open the aperture 20 and access the inner space of the receptacle 14. The user can then grasp a single wipe 12 a from the set of wipes 12 and pull the single wipe 12 a out of the receptacle 14 through the aperture 20 thereby dispensing the wipe 12 a from the container 10. After the user dispenses as many wipes 12 a as desired out of the container 10, the user may close the container 10 by covering the aperture 20 with the flap 16 and adhering the flap 16 to the outer surface of the plastic covering 18. As such, moisture in the wipes 12 is retained inside the container and, the remaining wipes 12 can be maintained in a moist state for future dispensing.

Obviously, numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A container comprising: a plastic receptacle including an outer surface and an inner space; an aperture formed on the outer surface to allow access into the inner space; and a flap that is adherable on the outer surface to close the aperture and is at least partially removable from the outer surface to open the aperture, wherein the inner space is sealed when the aperture is closed by the flap, and wherein the plastic receptacle and the flap are identical in composition.
 2. The container of claim 1, wherein the flap is entirely removable from the outer surface.
 3. The container of claim 1, wherein an adhesive is applied around a perimeter of the aperture thereby allowing the flap to be adhered over the aperture.
 4. The container of claim 1, wherein the flap includes a proximal portion and a distal portion configured to cover the aperture, and a part of the distal portion is not adherable to the outer surface.
 5. The container of claim 1, wherein a set of wet wipes is located within the inner space.
 6. The container of claim 5, wherein the set of wipes is formed as a roll of detachable wet wipes.
 7. The container of claim 5, wherein the wet wipes include alcohol.
 8. The container of claim 1, wherein the aperture has a given area and the flap is dimensioned to cover the given area.
 9. The container of claim 1, wherein the aperture has a diameter of 60 mm or less.
 10. The container of claim 9, wherein the aperture has a diameter of approximately 30 mm.
 11. A container comprising: a plastic receptacle formed by a pair of plastic sheets each having a perimeter, the plastic sheets bonded along the respective perimeter to form an inner space; an aperture formed on one of the plastic sheets to allow access into the inner space; and a flap that is adherable to the one of the plastic sheets to close the aperture and is at least partially removable from the plastic receptacle to open the aperture, wherein the inner space is hermetically sealed when the aperture is closed by the flap to retain moisture in the inner space, and wherein the plastic sheets and the flap are identical in composition.
 12. The container of claim 11, wherein the flap is entirely removable from the plastic receptacle.
 13. The container of claim 11, wherein an adhesive is applied around a perimeter of the aperture thereby allowing the flap to be adhered over the aperture.
 14. The container of claim 11, wherein the flap includes a proximal portion and a distal portion configured to cover the aperture, and a part of the distal portion is not adherable to the outer surface.
 15. The container of claim 11, wherein a set of wet wipes is located within the inner space.
 16. The container of claim 15, wherein the set of wipes is formed as a roll of detachable wet wipes.
 17. The container of claim 15, wherein the wet wipes include alcohol.
 18. The container of claim 11, wherein the aperture has a given area and the flap is dimensioned to cover the given area.
 19. The container of claim 11, wherein the aperture has a diameter of 60 mm or less.
 20. The container of claim 19, wherein the aperture has a diameter of approximately 30 mm. 